We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Lucy Blaylock a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Lucy, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Let’s start with the story of your mission. What should we know?

My name is Lucy Blaylock and I am 14 years old. When I was 8, I wanted to give my friend a homemade birthday gift, so I asked my mom if she would teach me how to sew a blanket. All my friends at the birthday party loved it so much, so I thought that maybe there were other kids who might like a blanket. I asked my mom to do a giveaway on her Instagram to see if anyone would nominate a child who may need a little extra love. I got 16 nominations! My mom asked me to read through them and pick which one I would like to make a blanket for. After reading through them, I told her it was impossible to pick just one and begged her to let me make one for each of them…and she agreed. :) As we posted about the blankets and who they were going to, we started getting more nominations. I talked to my mom and asked her if there was a way to keep making blankets. We talked about all the details and came up with a plan, and Lucy’s Love Blankets began!

I sew flannel Love Blankets for kids who are in need of a little extra love. I put a hand-stitched heart on each blanket to help remind them that they are loved. I have made over 1100 Love Blankets and have shipped them to 29 countries around the world. Kids are nominated for many reasons. Some are sick, going through a divorce, mental illness, being bullied, the death of a loved one, lonely, etc. We’ve even had kids who were nominated because they were really good kids who needed to have that recognized. The only requirement to receive a blanket is a child who needs love.

Lucy, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

(Much of this is on the previous page, but I’ll add some things to it.)

I’m now 14 years old and in 8th grade. Besides making my Love Blankets I love to play soccer and love to sing. I’ve been involved in musical theater, which I love. I was recently chosen to be featured on a show called Random Acts, and they surprised me with a trip to New York where I was able to hand deliver two Love Blankets and see my first Broadway musical, Wicked. It was the best experience of my life so far. I don’t get to hand deliver my blankets very often because there aren’t usually very many local nominations. So, that was really special to be able to hand deliver them and hug them.

I am the youngest of 9 children and have lived in Tennessee my whole life. I love people, pickles, and my dog Buddy. I have a group of friends who have been my friends since kindergarten and they have been my biggest cheerleaders. And yes, I’ve made them all their own Love Blanket. :)

Over the years I’ve been really blessed to have the support of many. I received the Prudential Spirit of Community Award and the Presidential Volunteer Service Award, which brought a lot of national and international recognition. I’ve never done this for recognition, but it introduced me to a lot of people who have offered support for my non-profit over the years, so I have been very grateful for that.

I’m passionate about anti-bullying and am always trying to find kids who need to know they are loved. As I’ve gotten older, I’ve also become aware of so many who struggle with mental health. I’ve had friends who have been suicidal, and it has helped me realize how many people need more kindness and love. Sometimes I wonder if there’s more I could do. But, I hope that when others learn about my nonprofit, it will inspire them to find ways to show kindness to people in their corner of the world. I believe kindness has the power to change the world, and that it’s so much easier than people think. EVERY kind act we do matters to someone. Sometimes we might not ever know who, but it will matter. I believe that if we all do something…no matter how small…the world can be changed in powerful ways. Because that’s what kindness does. It changes us.

Can you open up about how you funded your business?

Because I’m a nonprofit, funding is a must. It was really easy at first because people were so excited about what I was doing. But as it grew, we had to find ways to help pay for things. We definitely don’t have it perfectly figured out, but so far it works well for us.

When nominations come in, I start shopping for fabric. As soon as the blankets are ready for shipping, my mom posts about each child and shares info about why they were nominated and then in each post we provide our links and ask if anyone would like to sponsor the shipping for that particular blanket. We always get our shipping covered, and typically have enough donated where we’re able to go and purchase fabric for the next batch. I am so grateful for those who are willing to donate, because I couldn’t continue to do what I love without it.

We’d love to hear the story of how you built up your social media audience?

My whole nonprofit started on social media. It made it possible for people all over the world to find us and get involved, whether it was nominating children or making donations. We have a strong community on our social media and I think that has happened because we try to have a lot of personal connections on social media. We try to respond quickly to messages and comments and also reach out to follow up on the kids who received their blankets. My mom also likes to build relationships with the mother’s of the children nominated. We try to be very consistent in our posts and stories and try to share a variety of things. We have noticed that our numbers go up the most when we share about these brave kids. Their stories tug at your heart strings and pull you in. Their strength and courage is inspiring. So, I think for us it’s been about making personal connections with our followers and maintaining them.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: @lucysloveblankets
• Facebook: Lucy’s Love Blankets https://www.facebook.com/lucysloveblankets/

Image Credits
Ash.Lane Photography